2010年11月29日

Ikuo Mori, President & CEO, Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd., announced today that the new Trezia (earlier post) will be sold also in Europe, replacing the Justy which is a rebadged Daihatsu Sirion (aka Boon ブーン). The sales target and date were not revealed.

The latest addition to my next big order (earlier post), arriving at the end of February, is a NISMO GT-R LM Road Car (1996) scale model by HPI. The actual car is a street legal version of the R33s racing in 24 Hours of Le Mans, which was built by NISMO in order to meet the homologation regulations. Oh, and it's certainly among the most expensive 1/43 scale models I've got... as it costs 10,880 ¥ and thus, I had to remove the Nissan Skyline (HR31) No.23 1987 Inter Tec model from the order...

Well, this is an unusual post, as it is about a bluetooth headset, but I believe that it's always useful to mention products that are really good. During the last couple of months, I have tried two different bluetooth headset types, including the Sony Ericsson VH700 with Noise Shield and the Hi-Fi Wireless Headset MW600 which features FM radio.

The first one was decent enough, but I just could not hear with the bloody thing. I seriously had an issue with it and it may be partly Xperia X10 Mini's fault, as there a lot of complaints about the volume from users around the globe. After that, I decided to have a go with the MW600 which comes with in-ear headphones and as a result, I could hear! But, there were a lot of glitches with it, as very frequently it was refusing to work. I had it replaced and the second one was far better, as it would only stack in the event of an unanswered call.

So, as I was fed up with my last MW600, I refused to have it replaced again and thus, I grabbed my money back and followed a friend's advice about buying a Plantronics headset. I chose the Discovery 975, as it's easier to fit it than the Voyager PRO+, but I was a bit skeptical as to whether it would stay there firmly or not.

It is a rather expensive headset, although it comes with a number of high-tech features, such as AudioIQ² technology, WindSmart technology, a carrying case that not only protects the headset, but also recharges it, and Multipoint technology allowing pairing with a second device. You can check out Discovery 975's detailed spec by visiting Plantronics' website (English / Japanese 日本語).

Verdict? Simply the best headset I have ever used doing exactly what it says on the tin! I can hear exceptionally good, they can hear me as if I am not using a headset, it fits perfectly, I haven't noticed any glitches at all and we are talking about serious quality. The indicator also flashes in the case of a missed call, a feature which I find very handy. It's definitely worth every penny.

Nissan Leaf has won the European 2011 Car of the Year award and for sure it's a first for an EV! In total, the Leaf scored 257 points, while Alfa Romeo's Giulietta came second scoring 248 points and the Opel Meriva third by scoring 244 points.

I had reported in my previous post about the new Solio (YK8) that it is expected to be released in February 2011. Well, today Suzuki has published a teasing image and states that the new model will be introduced on Dec 24. As already reported, the new Solio will share its chassis and engine with the new Swift.

Subaru has today launched the new Trezia (earlier post) in Japan. The car is actually Toyota Ractis' (aka Verso-S) little brother and it shows the close corporation between Toyota and Subaru.

The Trezia will be available in seven different grades with the usual choice of a 2WD or 4WD powertrain in conjunction with a 1.3L or 1.5L engine. Both engines are available with a CVT gearbox. Prices range from 1,428,000 ¥ (1.3i) up to 1,832,250 ¥ (1.5i TYPE EURO 4WD).

Nissan Bluebird Sylphy (日産シルフィ), codenamed G11, uses Nissan's B platform and it is equipped with the same 1.5L engine as the Nissan Tiida / Versa (HR15DE), as well as the MR20DE (2.0L) engine. Unfortunately though, very few countries get it, besides Japan of course. For us, the Tiida is enough...

Anyway, the specific photo is from a magazine claiming that Nissan will bring back the "SSS" version, which will come with Juke's MR16DET (1.6L) engine. The model shown is the next-gen one, as the current model is totally different, and it makes me wonder whether we will get this as Tiida's successor and not the Chinese version we have already seen... Check out also my previous post about it.